iPod nano may not be as important as it was in the past, but it’s still relevant

Apple has removed the iPod nano and Shuffle from its music player lineup, but many people still use them.

The same week that Apple announced that the iPod nano and Shuffle would no longer be available for sale, I coincidentally came across my old nano at the bottom of a box. Before the announcement, I pulled my postage stamp sized nano out and took a small trip down memory lane. The iPod was my first step into tech gadget waters, which would eventually lead me to the career I have today.

I remember my first iPod

I was late to the digital music game. I thought the idea of a small but expensive device that only played digital versions of music was silly and inconvenient. I had my large collection of vinyl for listening to music in the house, and a Discman or Walkman for listening to CDs and tapes. Sure, I had to tote a book of heavy CDs or a lunchbox sized case of tapes everywhere I went, but I actually thought that was more convenient than having to load all my music onto a computer before transferring that music to a portable music device. Silly, right?

I finally took the plunge sometime in 2005 when I bought an iPod mini. I think I found it on sale. Even though I turned my nose up at the idea of MP3 players, I was secretly excited about this strange device. How does it work? How do I turn my vinyl, tapes, and CDs into something I can listen to on this tiny little box? I was excited to discover everything this new-fangled gadget could do.

It didn’t take long for me to fall completely in love with the iPod. Less than a year later, I had moved on to the iPod nano, of which I bought two more. It became my favorite music…